Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

RS097

Incident date

October 30, 2015

Location

تادف, Tadeef, Aleppo, Syria

Geolocation

36.34857, 37.531501 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Town level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Up to ten civilians – at least two of them young children – were alleged killed following a reported Russian strike on Tadeef. Some victims were later named

However neither the Syrian Observatory, Eldorar or Radio Alkul reported civilian deaths, instead describing between 12 and 15 injuries.

Both Al Araby and Syria News also reported the involvement of Assad regime aircraft in the attack.

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Male child of Ahmad Al Ghabbash
Child male killed
Mohammad Khaled Al A’wad
8 years years old male killed
Daughter of Abd Al Haleem Shbeib
Age unknown female killed
Yahiya al Dalati
Age unknown male killed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4 – 10
  • (1–3 children)
  • Civilians reported injured
    12–15
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Russian Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Russian Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Russian Military
  • Russian Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Original strike reports

Russian Military
Official source

The Russian MoD issued no report for the period October 28th-30th 2015. A monthly summary was issued on the evening of October 30th.

Syrian Regime Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Syrian Regime
  • Syrian Regime position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4 – 10
  • (1–3 children)
  • Civilians reported injured
    12–15
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Russian Military, Syrian Regime

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Incident Code

RS092

Incident date

October 30, 2015

Location

الرستن‬, Ar Rastan, Homs, Syria

Geolocation

34.93, 36.74 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Town level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

A woman and child (and possibly a third civilian) were killed in an alleged Russian morning airstrike at Ar Rastan.

According to the Union of Hama rebels, those killed were “an orphan and his grandmother“. They were later named by VDC.

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Family members (2)

Hamameh Abbas
Adult female Grand mother killed
Abdul Kareem Adnan al-Shaikh
Child male Grand son killed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2 – 3
  • (1 child1 woman)
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (1) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Video showing the bodies of the grandmother and her grandchild (via Suhaib Al-Ali)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the town of Ar Rastan, for which the generic coordinates are: 34.93, 36.74. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Unknown Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Unknown
  • Unknown position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Original strike reports

Unknown
Official source

The Russian MoD issued no report for the period October 28th-30th 2015. A monthly summary was issued on the evening of October 30th.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2 – 3
  • (1 child1 woman)
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Incident Code

RS093

Incident date

October 30, 2015

Location

تلبيسة, Talbisah, Homs, Syria

Geolocation

34.840505, 36.72922 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Town level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

One civilian male was killed and several non-combatants injured “including women and children” following an alleged Russian strike on Talbiseh.

The man – named by Violations Documentation Center as Iyad Hsain Jomaa Al Latouf – was also shown in a graphic video depicting his body.

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Family members

The victims were named as:

Iyad Hsain Jomaa Al Latouf
Adult male killed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (3) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    photo of Iyad Hsain Jomaa Al Latouf (via VDC)

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Video showing the body of Iyad Hsain Jomaa Al Latouf (via SRG)

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Video showing the body of Iyad Hsain Jomaa Al Latouf (via Talbisa h)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the town of Talbisah (تلبيسة), for which the generic coordinates are: 34.840505, 36.72922. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Unknown Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Unknown
  • Unknown position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Original strike reports

Unknown
Official source

The Russian MoD issued no report for the period October 28th-30th 2015. A monthly summary was issued on the evening of October 30th.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Incident Code

RS094

Incident date

October 30, 2015

Location

جسر الشغور, Jisr al Shughour, Idlib, Syria

Geolocation

35.81425, 36.319812 Note: The accuracy of this location is to City level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Up to five civilians – among them three children and an adult male – were reported killed in an alleged air and ground assault on Jisr al Shughour, according to a number of sources.

The Syrian Network later named the dead.

Shaam News reported that “Russian warplanes carried out two raids with rockets on the town of al Kastan in the countryside of Jisr Al Shoughour, which led to the fall of three martyrs and dozens wounded, in conjunction with an intense rocket attack launched from the town of Guerin targeting Jisr al Shoughour.”

Reporting from the village, Orient News’ Hashem al Abdullah interviewed an unnamed male eyewitness: “At exactly 8:35am the Russian planes were heard roaming the skies. As soon as we heard the sound of the planes a raid was carried out on the village of Al Kastan. There were three missiles, I am not sure what type they were, either vacuum or cluster, I am not sure what the term is for them. As a result three children were killed , three little children and a girl is in very serious condition, I am not sure if she will survive. I hope she does. That’s what happened.“

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Moustafa Khado
Adult male from Al Meshyrfi in Idlib killed
Mahmoud Zuhair Edrees
Child male killed
Ahmad Mohamad Al Abdullah
Child male From Idlib killed
Rana Rami Edrees
Child female killed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4 – 5
  • (3 children1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    10
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Russian Military

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (5) [ collapse]

  • Translation: #Idlib countryside: 5 martyrs and a number of injured in Russian plane bombing of the town of Kastan. (via radioharafm)
  • Translation: #Russia kills children #Russia bombs Syria #Jissr al Shoughour #Al Kastan A terrorist killed by Putin’s planes with her siblings. (via laith45)
  • Translation: the death of three children martyrs and a number of injured in a Russian raid on the town of Kastan in Jissr Al Shoughour countryside. Zaman News Agency. (via zamanews)
  • photo of the aftermath (via SNHR)
  • photo of the aftermath (via SNHR)

Russian Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Russian Military
  • Russian Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Original strike reports

Russian Military
Official source

The Russian MoD issued no report for the period October 28th-30th 2015. A monthly summary was issued on the evening of October 30th.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    4 – 5
  • (3 children1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    10
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Russian Military

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Incident Code

RS091

Incident date

October 30, 2015

Location

ابديتا, Ibdita, Idlib, Syria

Geolocation

35.71941, 36.54163 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Village level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

One civilian man named as Ahmed Murr was reported killed and 10 people injured in an alleged Russian morning airstrike on the village of Ibdita. His two sons were also critically wounded in the attack.

In a later news feature, Shaam News reported: “Samer was taken to the hospital in Ma’arat, where his body was put in one of the morgue fridges among the dead until one of the nurses heard sounds and quickly checked inside the fridge to find Samer still alive. He was quickly transferred to Idlib, and then to Karakhan in Turkey – where he underwent several operations to remove shrapnel from his head which led the green-eyed boy to lose his sight.”

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Ahmed Murr
Adult male killed
Samer
Adult male injured

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Samer Murr, blinded in a reportred Russian airstrike which also killed his father (via Shaam News)

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    SNN facebook post on November 2nd update says Samer Murr is still alive and is being treated in Hospital Can in the town of Karkhan in Turkey. (via SNN)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the village of Ibdita (ابديتا), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.71941, 36.54163. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Unknown Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Unknown
  • Unknown position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Original strike reports

Unknown
Official source

The Russian MoD issued no report for the period October 28th-30th 2015. A monthly summary was issued on the evening of October 30th.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Incident Code

CI131a

Incident date

October 30, 2015

Location

Qayyarah City Hall, Qayyarah City Hall area, Nineveh, Iraq

Geolocation

35.78904, 43.28928 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Within 100m (via Coalition) level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

More than four years after the event, the Coalition finally conceded the death of a civilian during an October 2015 airstrike on Qayarrah.

According to a field investigation conducted by reporters Azmah Khan and Anand Gopal for the New York Times Magazine, one civilian was killed by a Coalition airstrike on Qayyarah in this incident.

According to their reporting, the following occurred: “On or near 10/30/2015, an airstrike on Qayyarah City Hall, which had been overtaken by ISIS, resulted in the death of civilian Abdullah Khudr Ali, a retired military officer, who’d been nearby, and was struck in the head by shrapnel.”

In its October 2019 civilian casualty assessment report, the Coalition accepted responsibility for the death, noting: “October 30, 2015, in Qayyarah, Iraq, via New York Times report. Coalition aircraft conducted an airstrike against a Daesh facility. Regrettably, one civilian was unintentionally killed as a result of the strike. Case # 2349 Location: 38SLE454619”.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Abdullah Khudr Ali
Adult male Retired military officer killed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Declared strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Confirmed
    A specific belligerent has accepted responsibility for civilian harm.
  • Known attacker
    US-led Coalition
  • Known target
    ISIS

Sources (2) [ collapse]

US-led Coalition Assessment:

  • Known belligerent
    US-led Coalition
  • US-led Coalition position on incident
    Credible / Substantiated
    The investigation assessed that although all feasible precautions were taken and the decision to strike complied with the law of armed conflict, unintended civilian casualties regrettably occurred.
  • Given reason for civilian harm
    No reason given
    Airwars’ assessment of belligerent’s civilian casualty statement
  • Initial Airwars grading
    Confirmed
  • Civilian deaths conceded
    1
  • Civilian injuries conceded
    None
  • Stated location
    in Qayyarah, Iraq
    Nearest population center
  • Location accuracy
    100 m
  • MGRS coordinate
    38SLE454619
    Military Grid Reference System

Civilian casualty statements

US-led Coalition
  • Dec 5, 2019

  • October 30, 2015, in Qayyarah, Iraq, via New York Times report. Coalition aircraft conducted an airstrike against a Daesh facility. Regrettably, one civilian was unintentionally killed as a result of the strike. Case # 2349 Location: 38SLE454619

Original strike reports

US-led Coalition

Iraq

Near Al Qaim, one strike struck an ISIL logistical facility.
Near Kisik, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
Near Mosul, one strike struck an ISIL fighting position.
Near Qayyarah, one strike struck an ISIL staging area.
Near Ramadi, four strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL recoilless rifle, an ISIL heavy machine gun, two ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL mortar system, an ISIL weapons cache, three command and control nodes, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
Near Sinjar, four strikes struck four separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed four ISIL
fighting positions and two ISIL bunkers.

Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and wounded an ISIL
fighter.

Near Tal Afar, one strike [Canadian] destroyed an ISIL checkpoint and wounded two ISIL fighters. Strike assessments are based on initial reports. All aircraft returned to base safely.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Declared strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Confirmed
    A specific belligerent has accepted responsibility for civilian harm.
  • Known attacker
    US-led Coalition
  • Known target
    ISIS

Sources (2) [ collapse]

Incident Code

RS090

Incident date

October 29, 2015

Location

دوما, Douma, Damascus, Syria

Geolocation

33.5714804, 36.4033699 Note: The accuracy of this location is to City level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

At least 70 people died and as many as 550 were injured in what was initially reported as a Russian airstrike on the marketplace in Douma. However subsequent reports indicated the specific attack was most likely the work of Assad regime aircraft. Part of the confusion lay in the fact that Russian Air Force aircraft had also reportedly carried out strikes on the city that day.

As AP noted: “There were conflicting reports about the attack in Douma. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Co-ordination Committees said government forces fired more than 11 missiles at a market. The Observatory said the attack killed 57 people, while the LCC said at least 40 died… The Syrian National Council, the main Western-backed opposition group in exile, blamed Russian air strikes for the “massacre” in Douma, saying 55 civilians were killed. It said it was the second deadly attack in the past 24 hours after Russian air strikes hit the main Douma hospital.“

According to Medecins Sans Frontiers, “At least 70 people have been killed and 550 injured in an air strike on a marketplace in the Douma neighbourhood near Damascus, Syria. As the nearest makeshift hospital had been bombed the previous day, medical workers struggled to cope with the influx of injured people. MSF fears the intensification of bombing that has been seen in northern and central Syria over the course of October could become even more horrific if it spreads to besieged areas around Damascus, where almost a million people are trapped with no way to escape, few medical facilities, and no options for medical evacuations of seriously wounded. The devastation caused by the initial air strike on the market was exacerbated by further shelling on the rescue teams who were attending to the wounded. Two hundred and fifty patients required surgery, and a further 300 patients have been treated for non-surgical wounds. The multi-trauma wounds are described by medics as being worse than anything they have seen before.”

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    70
  • Civilians reported injured
    550
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Discounted
    Those killed were combatants, or other parties most likely responsible.
  • Suspected attacker
    Russian Military

Sources (12) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]

  • Russia also carried out airstrikes at Douma on October 28th, leading to initial confusion on who was respobnisble for the reported deaths of 70 civilians {Shaam News Network)
  • Photos showing Russian warplanes that are still roaming the skies of the besieged Eastern Ghouta and carrying out raids on its cities and towns. (via SNN)

Russian Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Russian Military
  • Russian Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Original strike reports

Russian Military
Official source

The Russian MoD issued no report for the period October 28th-30th 2015.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    70
  • Civilians reported injured
    550
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Discounted
    Those killed were combatants, or other parties most likely responsible.
  • Suspected attacker
    Russian Military

Sources (12) [ collapse]

Incident Code

LQ016

Incident date

October 29, 2015

Location

الظهير, Al Dahir, Sirte, Libya

Geolocation

31.200556, 16.428333 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Neighbourhood/area level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Unidentified warplanes reportedly carried out multiple airstrikes in the east, south and west of Sirte at midnight, local media reported.

According to Akhbar Alaan, “unidentified warplanes launched air strikes on the Libyan city of Sirte targeting areas occupied by an ISIS in the south and west of the city, eyewitnesses said.”
There were no known public reports of civilian harm.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (8) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (1) [ collapse]

  • Translation: Unknown aircraft bombed on Wednesday two sites of ISIS district in the west of the city of Sirte, Dhahir (Source: @wady_dynar)

Unknown Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Unknown
  • Unknown position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Unknown

Sources (8) [ collapse]